Nearly 40 years ago, Nuno Bettencourt walked into Mouradian Guitar Co. in Boston, where Pat Badger was working. They formed a bond that would change their worlds—and ours—with the multi-platinum band Extreme. In March of 2024, Badger, Bettencourt, and their tech John Thayer invited PG’s John Bohlinger to talk through their current rig.
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Washburn Wrecking Crew
This Washburn N4 was developed in collaboration with Nuno Bettencourt, Washburn, and Seattle-based luthier Stephen Davies. The guitar was introduced in the mid-to-late 1990s and became Bettencourt's primary guitar. The 4N features a balanced alder body with a Seymour Duncan ’59 in the neck and a Bill Lawrence L-500 in the bridge, plus an ebony fretboard and a Kahler whammy that was featured on the earliest iterations. Later production models included a Schaller tremolo before landing on the current Floyd Rose dive bomber for off-the-rack N4s. Nuno’s strings are a custom set of GHS Boomers (.009–.052) and his custom-made picks come from Grover Allman in Australia.
Sweet As Honey
This is “Bumble Bee,” a custom-painted N4 tribute to King Edward that was done by the luthier Craig Stofko behind CHS Custom Guitars, based out of Carmel, New York. It’s a standard Nuno Washburn signature, but with a maple fretboard (a first for Nuno and the N4 series).
Softer Sounds
This Washburn Festival EA20S-Nuno Bettencourt is in the video for Extreme’s song “More Than Words,” which was filmed over 30 years ago.
This custom-painted Washburn 12-string acoustic is heard on “Hole Hearted.”
Triple Duals
Nuno tours with three Marshall JCM 2000 Dual Super Leads. Usually, he only runs one through a Marshall 4x12 cab. (There are six total onstage but only one is hot and mic'd.) All the cabs are loaded with Celestion G12T-75s that combine a huge, tightly controlled low-end and aggressive mid-range with a softened top-end.
Nuno runs few effects. In front of the amp, there’s a battery powered Pro Co RAT (which stays on all the time), a Boss OC-5 Octave (plugged in and connected for just two solos), and a script logo MXR Phase 90 without a light. There’s also a Boss GT-8 that runs through the effects loop of the Marshall for delays.
Kingly Gifts
This Mouradian CS-74 bass is Pat Badger’s number-one. The alder-bodied bass, fitted with an EMG pickup, was built for Tom Hamilton from Aerosmith. About two years ago, Tom gave the bass to Pat. This and all of Badger’s basses are strung with Rotosound Ultramag Strings (.045–.105).
This Mouradian one-pickup bass was built for Michael Anthony from Van Halen. Michael passed it along to Pat a few years ago.
This classic ’80s Hamer Blitz bass is a recent Reverb purchase.
Badger's Den
Badger tours with two Ampeg amps: a SVT-4 Pro and a SVT Classic. There’s a wall of 4x10 cabs underneath them, but only one is used.
Pat runs his bass into a Boss TU-3 tuner, Boss GE-7 EQ, EHX Micro POG, Pro Co Rat, Tech 21 SansAmp Bass Driver DI, and EBS Billy Sheehan Signature Drive.
Shop Nuno Bettencourt & Pat Badger's Gear
Washburn N4-Nuno Vintage USA Electric Guitar
Washburn Nuno Bettencourt N4 Authentic Signature - Natural Matte
Seymour Duncan SH-1n '59 Model Neck 4-conductor Humbucker Pickup - Black
MXR CSP026 '74 Vintage Phase 90 Pedal
Pro Co RAT 2 Distortion / Fuzz / Overdrive Pedal
Boss OC-5
EMG 35DC Active Ceramic Modern Humbucker Bass Pickups
Rotosound UM45 UltraMag Type 52 Alloy Bass Guitar Strings - .045-.105 Standard 4-String
Ampeg SVT-CL 300
Ampeg SVT-810AV 8x10"
Ampeg SVT-4PRO 1200-watt Tube Preamp Bass Head
EBS Billy Sheehan Ultimate Signature Drive Pedal
Tech 21 SansAmp Bass Driver DI V2 Pedal
Electro-Harmonix Micro POG Polyphonic Octave Generator Pedal
Boss GE-7 7-band EQ Pedal
Boss TU-3 Chromatic Tuner Pedal with Bypass
![Sammy Boller Rig Rundown [2024]](https://www.premierguitar.com/media-library/rig-rundown-sammy-boller-2024.jpg?id=51781008&width=1245&height=700&quality=85&coordinates=0%2C0%2C0%2C0)
“I grew up wanting to be Eddie Van Halen and Randy Rhoads, but over time I’ve found my own dark and aggressive style. These days, my dream as a musician is to make people feel as connected to the cosmos as I feel when I play the guitar,” wishes guitarist Sammy Boller.
Sammy Boller has been playing guitar most of his life. He played in high school orchestra and even attended University of Michigan’s School of Music, Theatre & Dance. In 2012, his life forever changed when he won Guitar Center’s “Master Satriani” competition. (Watch his submission for “Satch Boogie” here.)
Catapulting off that success, the next year Boller joined Detroit rockers Citizen Zero. The band released their 2016 debut LP, State of Mind, and its lead single “Go (Let Me Save You)” climbed to #17 on Billboard’s mainstream rock chart.
But even with Citizen Zero’s success, Boller wasn’t sending listeners into the stratosphere feeling one with the stardust. Then while shopping his instrumental solo work, he quickly earned a fan in CandyRat Records owner Rob Poland who signed Sammy. (CandyRat was started by Poland in 2004 and began working with Don Ross, Andy McKee, Antoine Dufourto. Boller released his debut solo album and an additional standalone single—Kingdom of the Sun and “Path of the Heart”—in 2020 that snake between Sunset shred and post-rock melodies. The next year was celebrated with Boller’s stunning third release “Ritual Lights” showing Sammy’s first (solo) recorded run in with the wah wah. (Something you’ll now see on his pedalboard later.) He’s since dropped a pair of singles “Spellbound” and “Midnight Garden” that grow off his enchanting formula and adds in heightened technical abilities and deeper rhythmic grooves.
Before his headlining show at Nashville’s Bowery Vault, the fretboard maestro shows off a pair of versatile guitars, explains why the chase for his pinnacle amp is over, and details and demos the select stompboxes that send his sound into the asteroid belt.
[Brought to you by D’Addario Strings & XPND Pedalboard.]
Les Paul, More Axcess
Sammy Boller scored this Gibson Les Paul Axcess Custom—his main cruiser since he was 20—on an eBay safari. It’s completely stock to him except he flipped the pickups for a set of Motor City Pickups with a HotHead (bridge) and Afwayu (neck). Both pickups are coil-tapped so when Boller needs a different tone for tapping or less aggression, it’s there with a pull of a knob. His previous band, Citizen Zero, often performed in drop-D tuning, so he added an EVH D-Tuna to his Floyd Rose. The floating tremolo has been blocked off for tuning stability. And for his solo stuff, he typically plays a half-step down and always uses Elixir Strings 12052 Nanoweb (.10-.46).
Soul of the World
On the top side of his Les Paul, he etched in an inspirational reminder.
No Holds Barred
The second steed in his svelte setup is this Friedman NoHo 24 that Boller fell in love with years ago at NAMM. Not a fan of “new” guitars, Boller had the Friedman team take the pristine, flame-maple-topped NoHo and gave it the company’s “vintage” touch seen on other models in their lineup. The “super strat” still has been upgraded with the same pickups as the Axcess— HotHead (bridge) and Afwayu (neck)—and the 24-fret guitar features a compact 24.75" scale length.
Excalibur
“I think I tried every amp out there,” jokes Boller. “But as soon as I plugged into one of these, I was like, ‘I’m done!’” The Friedman BE-100 has been his go-to amp for over seven years. The amp’s lively, supercharged plexi tone matched with modern appointments (three channels, effects loop, toggles for voice, bright, and cln-be-hbe) makes it a Swiss Army knife for Boller. Underneath the head, is a checkered Friedman 100-watt 4x12 cab outfitted with a pair of Celestion Vintage 30s and a couple of Celestion Creamback 25s.
Sammy Boller's Pedalboard
In front of the Musicomlab EFX MK-V Audio Controller, Boller has routed his Shure GLXD16+ digital wireless pedalboard unit, Korg Pitchblack Tuner, MXR EVH Phase 90, Empress Compressor (to lift his clean tapping parts), Dunlop CBM95 Cry Baby Mini Wah, and ISP Technologies Decimator II G-String that has two signals before and in the effects loop. The three other pedals in the BE-100’s effects loop are an Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail, MXR Carbon Copy, and a TC Electronic Flashback X4. Everything rides on the Friedman Tour Pro 1529 Platinum pedalboard.
Shop Sammy Boller's Rig
Gibson Les Paul Axcess Custom
Friedman BE-100 Deluxe
Friedman 412 Checkered 100-watt 4x12" Extension Cabinet
Celestion Vintage 30s
Celestion Creamback 25s
Shure GLXD16+ Digital Wireless Guitar Pedal System
Korg Pitchblack Tuner
MXR EVH Phase 90
Empress Compressor
ISP Technologies Decimator II G-String
Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail
MXR Carbon Copy
TC Electronic Flashback X4
Friedman Tour Pro 1529 Platinum Pack 15-inch x 29-inch Pedalboard
Elixir Strings 12052 Nanoweb (.10 .46)